Mat



H. MIDGLEY 1,841,837

Jan. 19, 1932.

MAT

Filed Sept 29, 1930 Patented Jan. 19, 1932 PATENT OFFIQE HERBERTMIDG'LEY, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS MAT Application filed September29, 1930. Serial No. 485,030.

This invention relates to a mat and is particularly adapted for adriving-off mat for a golf course, although it is capable of other uses.For instance, it can be used as a door mat.

The principal objects of this invention are to provide a mat ofconsiderable stiffness with a comparatively soft and yielding body andupper surface; to construct it in such a way 19 that it will be verydifficult if not impossible to wear depressions and grooves in it by theordinary wear and tear to which the device is subjected and to provide aconstruction in which the top surface is held in position by meanssecured firmly in the base of the mat and incapable of wearing andmaking depressions in the same way as a textile material would be.

Other objects and advantages of the in- 29 vention will appearhereinafter.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 isa longitudinal sectional view of a mat constructed in accordance withthis in vention; and

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

This mat, being designed particularly for use in supporting a ball fordriving OH in miniature or ordinary golf, is designed to have a verydurable structure and a comparatively soft or level upper surface.

In the form shown in Figs. 1 and 2 it comprises a foundation 10 of acombination of textile and rubber sheets preferably but, of course, anyother material can be used that is tough and durable and will stand theweather out of doors. This material is provided with teeth 11 preferablyformed of pieces of wire in the form of staples. Preferably the material is made on a card clothing manufacturing machine and is in fact apiece of card clothing.

The wires 11, however, are comparatively stiff and large in size. Theymight be straight but they are shown as bent at the ends in thedirection in which the user of the mat drives off. The foundation andteeth can be varied within wide limits as will appear later.

In this preferred form, after the piece of card clothing is constructedit is provided on the top with a thick felt like layer of hemp or anyother coarse fibre and this layer is saturated with glue or similarmaterial, preferably rubber cement, and is beaten into the card clothingso as to form a fabric like a felt with numerous interstices. The cementis in a liquid or plastic condition when the fibre is applied and thefibre with the cement adhering to its particles is beaten down from thetop of the teeth 11 to the foundation 10 so that it surrounds the wires11 and forms a loose mass throughout the length of the wires. The top ofthe surface of the fibrous material is just slightly above the tips ofthe wires 11 and presents a flat somewhat soft flexible surface. Theindividual mats preferably are cut out of larger sheets of material madein this way or they can be made individually.

It will be seen that, when this mat is set up on a golf course with theteeth pointing in the direction in which the ball is to be driven andthe mat is anchored in the ground, it will form an ideal flexible matfor this purpose. It furnishes no resistance to the desired travel ofthe ball and the teeth resist the tendency of the ball placed always inthe same spot to form a depression in the upper surface of the mat. Theteeth are made of wire which is resilient and if depressed by a blowthey fly back to the same level by their own resiliency. Even after thefibre is very largely worn away, the teeth themselves will constitute agood surface on which the balls will not readily roll away and fromwhich they can be driven without resistance. The fabric is extremelydurable for this purpose and as long as it lasts it is unlikely todevelop any channels or depressions that cause the ball to jump upwardlyinto the air when driven from the mat. It will stand all kinds ofweather. The wires also protect the fibre from wear.

Many changes can be made in this idea within the scope of thisinvention. The foundation can be made of tarred paper to reduce expense,the wires can be formed of staples, as in ordinary card clothing, or ofsingle wires; they can be straight or bent as has been shown, the bentconstruct-ion being preferred.

In any event holes are not likely to form in the fabric, ragged edgesare not likely to develop and irregular putting is decreased.

Although I have illustrated and described only one form of the inventionI am aware of the fact that modifications can be made therein by anyperson skilled in the art without departing from the scope of theinvention as expressed in the claims. Therefore I do not wlsh to belimited in this respect but what I do claim is 1. As an article ofmanufacture, a mat provided with a foundation or bottom having metallicmembers extending upwardly therefrom and a body of fibrous material heldtogether by an adhesive on the fibers thereof, said body of fibres andadhesive extending throughout the metallic part of the foundation andhaving its upper surface substantially in the plane of the upperportions of said metallic parts.

2. As an article of manufacture, a fabric for use in making matsconsisting of a foundation having metallic portions extending away fromthe foundation and separated from each other so as to provideinterstices among them and a. body of interlaced fibres saturated withliquid or plastic adhesive material forced into the interstices to bindthe fibres thereto and presenting a top surface substantially in theplane of the upper ends of the metal portions, I

3. As an article of marmfzwturc, a fabric adapted to be cut into mats orthe like which consists of a durable and flexible foundation, wiresanchored in the foundation and projecting upwardly therefrom and a bodyof fibres saturated with a plastic cement filling the intersticesbetween the wires and extending to the tops thereof to furnish a flatupper surface.

4. As an article of manufacture, a driving off mat having a strongflexible durable bottom. provided with substantially vertical re silientmetallic wires having interstices between them, and a soft body offibres held to gether with an adhesive and penetrating into saidinterstices to hold the fibre thereto and present a durable resilientupper surface 5. As an article of manufacture, a driving off mat forgolf or the like which consists in a foundation of card clothing, thespaces between the teeth of which are filled with rough fibre having aplastic cement extending throughout its body, said rough fibre andcement filling the space between the foundation of the card clothing andthe tops of the teeth and furnishing a body throughout that space havinga flat surface for the met.

6. As an article of manufacture, a mat for the purpose described,consisting of a body of card clothing having a horizontal founfixed mysignature.

HERBERT MIDGLEY.

